Episode 127: A recap of Henry VI part one and the potential involvement of Christopher Marlowe A word on methods of authorship attribution in the context of Shakespeare and Marlowe The dating and sources of the play A synopsis of Henry VI part two The characterisation of the War of the Roses The decline of England mapped out in the play The main characters in the play The weakness of the king as portrayed in the play The powerplay between Gloucester, York and Margaret Margaret as a central character in the play The use of language to define different characters The contrast between Henry and M ..read more

Episode 125: A detailed look at the first Shakespearean history play 'Henry 6th part 1' The problems with dating 1 Henry VI How much of the play did Shakespeare write? The relationship of the play to parts 2 and 3 The sources of the play A brief summary of the play The play in relation to other history plays of the time Criticism of the battle scenes The theme of the loss of the English Empire and the end of chivalry The portrayal of Joan and the French The portrayal of the English aristocracy Problems with the structure of the play Support the podcast at: www.thehistoryofeuropeantheatre.com ..read more

Bonus Episode 36: Sometimes things conspire against the podcaster, as has happened to me in the last couple of weeks, meaning that I have not been able to get the promised episode up to scratch in time.  To make up for this and fill the gap I have created an episode that goes back to Greek theatre.  It looks at that most mysterious of the ancient Greek forms, the satyr play and two of the men who were instrumental in vastly increasing our knowledge of these things. The place of the satyr play in the history of Ancient Greek theatre The satyr play as part of the Dionysia fes ..read more

Episode 123:  The Origins of New Place The Clopton’s of Stratford-Upon-Avon The first house at New Place Hugh Clopton and his support for Stratford William Clopton William Bott and murder at New Place (maybe) William Underhill sells New Place to Shakespeare William Underhill and his son Faulk (another murder) The New Place of Shakespeare’s time The question of how much time Shakespeare spent in New Place The gardens of New Place The house passes through Shakespeare’s family after his death. New Place is rebuilt Shakespeare and the New Place mulberry tree Francis Gastrell’s eventful time a ..read more

Episode 122: The fourth and final part of the biography of Shakespeare. The rise of Shakespeare as actor and playwright for the Lord Chamberlain’s Men. ‘The Comedy of Errors’ performed at Grey’s Inn, ‘the night of errors.’ The influence of the inns of court. Plays for special occasions. Francis Meres’ comments on Shakespeare. Shakespeare’s involvement in a legal summons. The move from The Theatre to The Globe. The opening of The Globe. The sharers at The Globe. Shakespeare lodging on Silver Street and his involvement with the Mountjoy family. Shakespeare’s interests in Stratford-Upon-Avon. The ..read more

Episode 121: For this episode I’m very pleased to welcome Katherine Sheil, Professor of English at the University of Minnesota for the second part of our conversation about Anne Hathaway, based around her book ‘Imagining Shakespeare’s Wife: The Afterlife of Anne Hathaway’. In this part we went on to talk about the different views of Anne in fiction and non-fiction through the centuries.  The breadth of views are quite astounding and we try to unpick how some of these at lease could have come about. Katherine is a leading expert on Anne Hathaway and her legacy to history so, following ..read more

The lost years of Shakespeare’s early life have given space for some myths and legends to grow over the centuries, before we can trace a few facts of his early life in London. The myth of Shakespeare and the Crab-tree. The myth of Shakespeare the deer slayer. Nicholas Rowe – the first editor of Shakespeare. The Queen’s men in Stratford. The myth of Shakespeare’s early days in London. Was Shakespeare’s first London home in Shoreditch? Tracing Shakespeare’s moves through London via tax records. London in the late 15th century. The ‘upstart Crow’ comment Shakespeare’s growing popularity with ..read more

Episode 119: For this episode I’m very pleased to welcome Katherine Sheil, Professor of English at the University of Minnesota.  Katherine is Author of several books about Shakespeare, but today we particularly talk about her book about Shakespeare’s wife called ‘Imagining Shakespeare’s Wife: The Afterlife of Anne Hathaway’.  It is a fascinating examination of the known facts of Anne’s life and of how her persona has been used and abused through the centuries, as a means of examining and justifying views of Shakespeare, but also about how Anne has been viewed in her own rig ..read more

Bonus Episode 35: A conversation with Cassidy Cash, producer and host of 'That Shakespeare Life', the podcast that interviews expert historians to explore people, events, and objects that were living or happening in Shakespeare’s lifetime. Cassidy Cash is a Shakespeare historian, historical map illustrator, and host of That Shakespeare Life, That Shakespeare Life is currently ranked the #2 Shakespeare history podcast in the world. In addition to podcasting, Cassidy creates independent films about 16-17th century history and illustrated history maps that diagram life in turn of the 17th century ..read more

Episode 117: ‘To you your father should be as a God’. -              A Midsummer Night’s Dream – Act 1 Scene 1 The first of a series of episodes covering the biography of William of Stratford. Richard Shakespeare – William’s grandfather Richard Shakespeare – William’s uncle John Shakespeare – William’s father                   His move to Stratford Upon Avon               ..read more